from nine-county-coalition – excerpt The Bay Area’s MTC (Metropolitan Transportation Commission) looks really good on paper. It has an attractive website rich with information, it has the support of potent organizations such as SPUR and the Bay Area Council, and since its hostile takeover of ABAG (Association of Bay Area Governments) MTC holds the transportation … More Let’s Declare January MTC Awareness Month!
By Polly Baker : nine-county-coalition – excerpt What if your government set up and operated a regional system of agencies with the goal of eliminating your legal political power and jurisdictions while it took control of your life? If this sounds crazy, I assure you it is not. Check it out for yourself: https://barc.ca.gov/ The … More BARC-ing Up The Wrong Tree
By Ida Mojadad : sfweekly – excerpt State regulators are weighing a dramatic shake-up of PG&E. Could San Francisco join dozens of other jurisdictions in establishing a public utility? What would California’s increasingly devastating wildfires look like if PG&E were beholden to the people instead of to its shareholders? That’s the crux of a proposal … More Smart Ideas From Other Cities: Utilities Powered by the People
By J.D. Morris : sfchronicle – excerpt California regulators are considering whether Pacific Gas and Electric Co. should shake up its leadership, split its core operations into separate companies or be transformed into a publicly-owned utility. In an announcement late Friday afternoon, the California Public Utilities Commission stressed it had not drawn conclusions but listed … More Regulators mull massive changes to PG&E management, structure
By Rachel Swan : sfchronicle – excerpt It was supposed to be a fairly smooth sign-off on an ambitious plan to stanch the Bay Area’s housing crisis. Instead, Wednesday’s meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission became a taut showdown. While a panel of mayors, transit officials and business leaders vigorously defended their proposal to build … More Ambitious plan to ease Bay Area housing crunch draws heat, but passes
by Miller Starr Regalia : jdsupra – excerpt In a published opinion filed December 17, 2018, the Third District Court of Appeal affirmed a judgment granting a writ setting aside El Dorado County’s approval of, and related Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) for, construction of a Dollar General Store in the “quaint” downtown area of unincorporated … More When CEQA Gets Ugly: Third District Holds Lay Public Opinion Supports Fair Argument That Project May Have Significant Aesthetic Effect Requiring EIR
By Mercury News & East Bay Times Editorial Boards : mercurynews – excerpt It’s great that the region is finally having this overdue discussion, but it’s critical that we get it right A coalition of divergent Bay Area interests has come together on a plan to confront the region’s housing crisis… The group’s so-called CASA … More Editorial: Good, bad in much-needed plan for Bay Area housing crisis
By Matt Levin : calmatters – excerpt (includes podcast) Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom may have set an astronomical goal for allowing construction of 3.5 million new housing units in California by 2025, but a key Democratic state senator says it will never happen unless the state pries away some local control over housing decisions… In this … More Wiener: State will never reach Newsom’s housing goals without taking power from cities
By Diana Diamond : paloaltoonline – excerpt Suburban residents on the SF Peninsula may possibly be faced with draconian state rules that will dictate how dense and high housing must be built in areas near Caltrain stops and major bus stops – if a newly introduced Senate Bill 50 is adopted. Specifically, SB 50 prevents … More A draconian idea for more high-rise housing in our cities
Kurtis Alexander : sfchronicle – excerpt The earthquakes hit just days after last year’s near-catastrophe at Oroville Dam, when the spillway cracked amid heavy rains and 188,000 people fled in fear of flooding. The timing of the two small tremors about 75 miles north of Sacramento was curious, and frightening. Were the quakes part of … More What caused nearly 20,000 quakes at Oroville Dam? Scientists weigh in on mystery
